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William was born in Akron, OH the middle of three sons. He attended
school in Akron and worked with his father and brothers in the
potteries. He traveled, selling their goods and looking for sources of
clay. He met Isabel Sanborn in Jackson, Mi and they married in 1871.
They moved with their families to Illinois City, IL because of the good
clay and opened a shop. He ran the barge used to transport their
preserve jars to market. He lived in Sweetland, IA and had th barge in
Fairfield, IA. Later he was the foreman on the Hennepin Canal, worked on
the early railroads from Milan, IL to sterling, IL. He was a member of
the Knights of Pythias. This was a group formed to reunite the north and
south after the Civil War. While working on the Hennepin Canal he was
struck from behind by a bridge rivet and developed softening of the brain
tissues. In later years he was unable to work due to this condition.
Undocumented: When he met Isabel Sanborn she was quite young and he
kidnapped her and they were married against her family's wishes.
William was a Potter, Canal/Barge Man, and Cement Forman. He stood 6 feet
4 inches and weighed 240 pounds.
Information provided by Rose Smith rmsmith@revealed.net Jan 1998